Sunshine after rain
by Arriane.Isobel
Summary: . His wrist killed and his head was pounding. He was aware of the smoke coming from the car and sound of an alarm somewhere, he looked out to see the four by four had fared much better than Merlin's old Ford.
1. Chapter 1

"You took the wrong turning, idiot" Arthur pouted as the windscreen wipers of Merlin's battered car swished furiously.

"Only because you sent me that way, prat" Merlin gritted out. Arthur's sense of direction was nearly as bad as his patience, which had worn thin.

"If you hadn't got lost we wouldn't be in this mess" Arthur half shouted. Merlin barely flinched, barely. Arthur raised his voice a lot; years of not being listened to had taken its toll on him. But he'd rarely shout when Merlin was driving, he generally knew better than that.

They were on a thin country lane that looked as if it would be hazardous in the daylight. But now, dark, ominous clouds hung low and angry, rain pounded the roof of their car.

"Can you find where we are on the map?" Merlin asked as calmly as he could right now, which, as it turned out, was not very calm at all.

Arthur squinted at the map, but it was no good. It was just too dark, and there wasn't anywhere to pull over. The tension grew in the car, thick and taught.

They'd been to see Uther and his new wife; Catrina. Uther, unfortunately, did not approve of Arthur and Merlin's relationship, and Catrina supported his views fully, even suggesting cutting Arthur out of the will.

Merlin had tried desperately to calm Arthur down, but it was in vain. All Arthur needed to do now was rant and slam a few doors, which he wouldn't do until they got back to the flat that seemed a million miles away. Apart from directions, and cutting remarks about Arthur's awful sense of direction, they didn't speak.

Merlin sighed, and – reluctantly – tried talking to Arthur again in a soothing tone that you would use on an injured bird.

"Look, Arthur, I know it seems bad, but he'll come around. He won't cut you out his will, you're his only son'

Arthur glared at him, shaking with rage. "And what the hell do you know about it? You don't know what he will and will not do you complete idiot" Arthur snapped. Merlin gritted his teeth and said no more about the situation.

Sometime later, Arthur's shrill ringtone cut through the stony silence.

"Are you going to answer it?" Merlin asked after a few beats.

Arthur turned to glare at Merlin "No I'm not going to answer it, will you just shut up and keep –" He was cut off by a horn blaring. Looking up, he saw the other car, a sturdy four by four heading towards them at an alarming speed. Merlin tried to break, but it was too late. There wasn't enough time before the four by four slammed into the front of them. The sickening sound of metal colliding turned his stomach. Arthur put his hand out to stop himself flying forward. There was a crunch of bones, then nothing.

He wasn't out for long. Slowly, he opened his eyes. His wrist killed and his head was pounding. He was aware of the smoke coming from the car and sound of an alarm somewhere, he looked out to see the four by four had fared much better than Merlin's old Ford.

_Merlin._

He looked over to the driver's seat, and his heart sank. Merlin was slumped against the wheel, an alarming amount of blood pouring down his face in a steady stream.

"No" His voice was shaky as hot tears dripped down his cheeks. "Please, god no" He shook Merlin gently, then quickly pulled his hand away. He shouldn't move him, what if he's broken his neck? His back? It was all too horrible to think about. His breaths were slow and shallow, but he was still breathing.

"Sir, sir! Are you hurt?" It was a woman's voice. He looked over to the window. A woman stood trying to pry open the door with no luck.

"My boyfriend, he's not waking up" Arthur croaked. "Why isn't he waking up?"

"I've called for an ambulance sir, they'll be here soon. I checked on the driver of the other car but..." She trailed off, biting her lip.

"But?" Arthur prompted.

"It smells like alcohol, I think he's drunk" She said in a quiet voice.

He couldn't take it in, he looked back to Merlin. He was so pale, and there was so much blood, what if he was...what if he...no.

"Oh god" He cried, "I – I told him to shut up, before we crashed, before he...I didn't mean it, Merlin, not like this, please, please wake up, Merlin!" He stroked Merlin's hair, hoping to god he'd wake up, hoping he'd do anything.

"It's alright" The woman soothed. "The ambulance is coming"

After what seemed like a lifetime, the sound of sirens filled the air, and Arthur was lying on a stretcher, being carted off to hospital. He wanted to stay, he be here with Merlin, he didn't want to him to wake up alone. He tried to protest, but it was too hard to speak, too hard to keep his eyes open...

He woke up to the sound of his heartbeat beeping on a cold machine. He checked himself over mentally before even attempting to open his eyes. His head was pounding like a drum, and his arm hurt. He felt bruised and battered. Slowing, gingerly, he opened his eyes. He was in a sterile white hospital room.

"Oh Arthur" It was his father's voice. He sounded ragged, like he'd been crying. "I thought I'd lost you"

"What happened?" Arthur asked trying to sit up. Gently, Uther pushed him back down.

"I'll get the doctor" Uther gave him a stern look. "Do not move"

Arthur nodded weakly, and waited for the doctor.

He had a broken arm, a nasty concussion, and was generally bruised, but other than that, the doctor assured his he was fine.

"What about Merlin?" He asked feebly.

The doctor, and old man named Gaius, raised a single white eyebrow. "His mother's with him" Was all he got. "Now, I'll give you some painkillers for your head and your arm, and I've got a leaflet somewhere about concussion...but we'll see you in six weeks for a check up"

"Thank you, Doctor" Uther said. "We appreciate your help"

Gaius nodded and walked out the door.

"What's happened to Merlin?"

Uther gave him a long look. "I'm afraid he wasn't as lucky as you. Last I heard he was still in surgery"

"Surgery" Arthur repeated in shock. "Why, what's wrong, is he okay? What's happened to him?"

"I don't know" Uther said calmly. "I'm not family, they wouldn't tell me"

He was shaking; visions of Merlin slumped against the wheel of his car, crimson blood rushing down in pale face. No.

"I've got to see him, I need to make sure he's okay"

"There will be plenty of time for that, son, but you need rest"

"No, I won't rest until I've seen him, until I know what's happened to him."

Uther sighed. "You really care for this boy?"

"Of course I do, Father what will it take for you to believe that I love him, with all my heart I love him, and I can't lose him, not now"

"Okay" Uther said, defeated. "Get dressed, we'll pick up your painkillers and find out where Merlin is"

His father led the way to the ICU, Where Merlin lay on a small bed, covered in tubes and wires, connected to all sorts of monitors. Hunith sat in a chair next to him, holding his hand.

"What's wrong with him?" Arthur asked quietly, not taking his eyes off Merlin, who looked so small and fragile lying there. Had he always been so skinny?

Hunith jumped at Arthur's voice. "Arthur! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there" She wiped the tears from her cheeks and smiled warmly.

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have just barged in but, I couldn't, I didn't know if..."

"What are his injuries?" Uther interjected.

Hunith drew in a shaky breath. "His – his skull is fractured and he was haemorrhaging, he's in a coma, they don't know if he'll wake up. His ribs are broken and his lung was punctured and his leg – oh lord I've never seen such a state" She began to weep again, clinging onto Merlin's hand. "My baby, oh my baby, please come back"

Arthur put his arm around her. "He's strong, Hunith, he'll be fine, he'll wake up" He wasn't sure who he was trying to assure, but he hoped to god he was right.

Nurses came and went, Merlin was carted off to more scans and x-rays and whatever else.

Arthur waited, and waited, and waited.

It had been a week. A whole week he'd sat by Merlin's side, not moving. The doctor had said they didn't know if Merlin could hear them, but he told them to talk to him anyway. So Hunith and Arthur talked. About anything, shared memories and little bits of gossip. They begged him to come back.

And, finally, after a week of waiting, things began to look up. The swelling on his brain was going down, he was slowly getting better.

It was another three days before he showed any sign of life. It was 3 in the morning, Hunith had gone home for the night, and Arthur was talking in a hushed tone, clinging onto Merlin's hand for dear life.

"Come on, you idiot, wake up, we need you, I need you. I know I don't always show you, but I do need you, I love you. If you didn't wake up, I don't know what I'd do"

A squeeze.

A barely noticeable squeeze.

"Merlin?"

Another squeeze.

Merlin's eyes flickered

"Ar" He tried

"Shh, shh, it's okay, I'm here" he said through the lump in his throat. Tears threatened to fall, but he didn't care. Merlin was alive, he was awake.

"Arthur" He tried again, his voice weak.

"I'm here" He laughed. "I'll go get the doctor"

"Wha happened?" He whispered

"Don't worry, I'll explain later"

Gaius smiled as he checked over Merlin's chart, listing his injuries

"You gave us quite a scare there. Now, with head injuries like yours, it's likely you'll suffer some pretty nasty side effects, but don't worry; we're keeping you here for now. As for your leg, my boy, you're lucky they didn't amputate it. You're going to have to have more surgery on that, and plenty of physio if you're ever going to walk on it again; but it is possible. Now your ribs will hurt for a few weeks, but they're healing nicely"

Merlin smiled "Thank you, Doctor"

Arthur, who was standing in the corner of the room, nodded at Gaius.

"No problem, it's nice to see you awake. I'll get the nurse to bring you something for the pain" He lifted his eyebrow, and walked out.

It was silent for a few minutes, Arthur didn't know what to say, he didn't know how much Merlin remembered.

"Are you okay?" Merlin asked quietly, looking over Arthur.

Arthur took a deep breath. "Fine, broken arm and a concussion, I fared much better than you, I'm afraid to say."

Merlin frowned. "Don't say that" he snapped. "If anything was to happen to you, and it was my fault, I'd never forgive myself"

Arthur walked over to the bed, gently cradling his face. "God Merlin, I thought I'd lost you. You were just slumped against the wheel, you were so pale, and there was much blood! You were barely breathing; I thought for sure that you were gone. They had to cut you out your goddamn car and they wouldn't let me stay, they wouldn't me see you. When i woke up, all they'd tell me was that you were in surgery" He'd started to cry, the thought of it still made him sick. "I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry, i told you to shit, I never meant it, I didn't mean" He cut off, the words stuck in his throat.

"It's okay" Merlin said, wiping away his tears tenderly. "I'm here, I'm fine, really. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, I promise."

Arthur pressed a kiss against his lips. It was over far too quickly, but there would be plenty of time for that later, when Merlin was better.

"Come on, _Mer_lin" Arthur called. "There's a taxi waiting"

Merlin hobbled out the bedroom on his silver crutched, which in the past three months, he'd gotten pretty used to. His leg hadn't healed yet. His knee has shattered, and he'd fractured his ankle. He'd had pins put in around his knee, and the whole experience was unbelievably painful, but he was grateful to be alive.

He never did remember the accident, not fully, and Arthur thanked god for small miracles.

They were both dressed in their best suits for Gwen and lances wedding. Arthur had complained about how ridiculous weddings are, and Merlin just smiled ridiculously at him.

At the reception, they sat back and watched the newlywed couple dance their first dance, and Arthur kissed Merlin's cheek. "You know" He said in a low voice "I wouldn't mind one of these, when you're better, of course."

Merlin raised his eyebrows. "What, a dance?"

"No, you idiot, a wedding, a marriage, you, and me, getting married"

"Are you serious?" Merlin deadpanned.

Arthur scoffed. "Are you turning me down?"

"No, no, it's just that you've been complaining about weddings all day, now suddenly you want one?"

"Not suddenly, I've been thinking about it for a while, now come on, will you marry me or not?"

Merlin grinned, he was ridiculously beautiful when he did that. "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes" He said in his best princess voice. Arthur smirked.

"I think you'll look great in a big white dress, idiot"

"Prat"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Arthur stared through the window at Merlin, who was lying, still unconscious in a narrow hospital bed.

Gaius smiled warmly at him. "Don't look so grim, he made it through the surgery, his leg will start healing much faster now."

Arthur frowned. "Why isn't he waking up?"

"His heart rate dropped pretty low during the surgery, just give him some time, Arthur. You know as well as anyone that time is the best healer."

Arthur sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. God he was tired. Merlin had been in surgery for 6 hours, moving and removing pins and correcting bones and god only knows what else. "I just hate seeing him like this. Ever since the crash I'm scared I'll wake up and he's not there, like him recovering was all a dream."

"He's here, Arthur, I doubt he's going anywhere anytime soon."

"Can - Can I go in?"

"Of course, he'll be waking up soon. We'll keep him in over night, but you should be able to go home tomorrow"

"Thank you, doctor" Arthur smiled before walking into the room. He sat down in the chair beside the bed and took hold of Merlin's hand.

"Oh, you great big loveable idiot, what the hell are we going to do with you? Just hurry up and get better so we can get back to normal. Nothing's been the same, not since the accident" He kissed Merlin's knuckles. His hands were cold and pale and skinny.

"And you've got to start eating, too. I think I've been eating for both us recently...this is where you tell me that I'm fat, but you love me anyway" Arthur shook his and sighed, it was going to be a long night.

Arthur led the way back into their apartment. Merlin hobbled awkwardly behind, still a bit drowsy from the pain meds. Arthur guided him to the sofa. "Now you're not to move, hear me? I've got a few days off work so you can just sit there and do nothing."

"But – " Merlin tried, but Arthur quickly cut him off.

"Nothing!"

"What if I need to – "

"Nothing"

"Got it" Merlin nodded. He had a bad feeling that Arthur was going to drive him to insanity.

As it turned out, Merlin's gut instincts were always right. He couldn't even go to the bathroom without Arthur. He seriously considered getting a bell, just to top the whole thing off.

He loved Arthur, he did. But he was glad when he went off to work, with strict instructions to phone him every hour, on hour. And if he didn't, Arthur was going to call him. He might call in between anyway, just make sure everything was alright.

Merlin poked him with his crutch, and told him very sweetly to piss off to work so he could watch Jeremy Kyle in peace.

Merlin was 2 minutes late phoning Arthur, so it was decided that Arthur would just phone him. Merlin glared at the phone during the whole 'you can't be trusted to phone every hour so I'll so it myself' speech, and chucked the phone next to him and continued his Jeremy Kyle marathon.

At 3.15 – on the dot – There was a knock on the door. Merlin struggled to get to his feet. "Arthur, I swear to god if you've come to check on me I'm going to push you out the window and phone you every hour when you're recovering" He opened the door, and stood, shocked to see that it was not Arthur at the door.

"Excuse me?" Uther look perplexed.

"Err, nothing, sorry, I thought you were Arthur."

"Well, are you going to invite me in then?"

"Sure?" Merlin said, awkwardly turning out the way to let Uther in.

"I thought you'd be off them by now" Uther nodded to the crutches.

Merlin shrugged, this was the most Uther had ever said to him, bar the time he'd interrogated him over his education and career plan, then very quickly dismissed his existence.

"Had an operation on Saturday, they moved the pins to let my knee set"

Uther nodded, and then stared at the armchair in distaste before sitting down.

"Is Arthur around?"

"No, no he's at work? He'll be home about half 5 though?"

Uther grimaced. "It's actually you I came to talk to"

Merlin nodded sadly. "I think I know what you want"

Uther's face lit up in surprise. "You do?"

"You want me to leave Arthur"

"Look – "

"Thing is, though, I've already thought about it. Whether it would be the right thing or not. I want him to live his life, not have to always look after me. There's a chance that I might walk again, but the doctors can't guarantee anything, and I don't want to put that kind of pressure on Arthur, sometime I think he'd be better off without me."

Uther gave him a long look. "Do you really believe that?"

Merlin stared at him in surprised. "Don't you?"

"No"

"Oh, right, well"

"When I got the call from the hospital, telling me that Arthur had been in an accident, you can't even begin to imagine how I felt. I thought the worst, especially after how we'd left things. He was just lying in that damn hospital bed, he looked so young, so vulnerable, I can't cut him out just because he decided to love you instead of a girl who would give him an heir." Uther shook his head angrily. "He demanded to see you when he woke up, and when I did see you, I almost felt lucky" He shook his head. "It's a horrible thing to say, but to see you there; the Doctors were telling us that you might not wake up. I felt happy that it was you and not him. It made me re think how I treated you. You obviously make my son very happy" He gave Merlin a shrewd look.

"Oh" Was all Merlin could say.

"Don't leave him, Merlin"

"I won't"

"Good" Uther almost smiled then. "I came to tell you that you and my son have my blessing. For the wedding that is. I'll see myself out."

"Merlin!" Arthur called out when he got home.

"Yes dear?" Merlin called from the sofa

Arthur smiled, "Still watching Jeremy Kyle?"

"No, Maury now."

Arthur sat down next to him on the sofa and kissed his cheek. "Good day?" Merlin asked

"Long, and slow and I missed you"

"I missed you too"

"Good. Chinese?"

Merlin grinned at him, and Arthur stared for a minute, it still amazed him how Merlin made him feel when he smiled like that.

"I had a visitor today"

Arthur frowned. "Oh really, who?" He picked up the phone to call the Chinese.

"Uther"

Arthur had to stop himself from dropping the phone. "My father?!" he spluttered.

"How many other Uthers do you know?"

Arthur pointedly ignored that comment. "What did he want?"

"To apologise for the way he'd treated me in the past"

"Why?"

"Because he's sorry?"

"You know what I mean" Arthur half shouted.

"Because he sees how happy I make you, and that he was happy that I almost died in the car accident"

"What?!"

"Well he didn't say it exactly like that, he said he was grateful that you were alright, and he couldn't imagine what he'd do if it were you that was seriously injured"

"He said that?"

"Sort of yes, oh and he gave us his blessing for the wedding" Merlin raised his eyebrows.

Arthur went red. "I didn't, I never said, I mean, I told him I'd asked you, and that you'd said yes, but I didn't say anything about a wedding!"

Merlin laughed. "I believe you"

Arthur smiled "Well, I suppose that was a first then, something positive from my father?"

"Probably a last as well" Merlin smirked. Arthur kissed his head.

"Chinese, then?" Merlin nodded.

Later, in bed, Merlin wrapped his hand around Arthurs cock, stroking and caressing him. Arthur desperately pulled their mouths together for a sloppy kiss that was cut off by his groans as he came, hot and fast up their stomachs.

"Love you, love you so much" He panted, pressing their foreheads together.

"Love you too" Merlin whispered when Arthur was asleep, using his chest as a pillow, he smiled to himself. No, he wouldn't leave him after all.


End file.
